Considering all of
the injuries that Bradley had to endure during the 2008-2009 campaign, it was a
very good season for Coach Jim Les. The Braves ended up in the CIT and made it
all the way to the finals and that at least provided some great experience for
the younger players.

Key Losses: C David Collins, G
Darian Norris, F Theron Wilson

Key Newcomers:

The frontcourt lost a couple key players in David Collins and Theron Wilson and
that will be this team’s Achilles heel. And the only help the team will get from
the newcomers in the frontcourt are incoming freshmen Milos Knezevic and Jordan
Prosser. Prosseris is the more likely option to see playing time this year, but
one of those two will likely be asked to contribute quite a bit off the bench.
The backcourt does not need too much depth right now, but freshmen Jake Eastman,
James Robertson and Dyricus Simms-Edwards will be available if they are needed.

Backcourt:

The top four
returning scorers are all perimeter players and that is not counting the return
of Andrew Warren who missed all of last year with an injury. Sam Maniscalco
turned into a very valuable leader. Not only did he average 12.6 points per game
during the 2008-2009 campaign, but he dished out 3.1 assists and connected on
two three-pointers per contest. Dodie Dunson was also a double figure scorer
last season who can knock down the outside shot. Chris Roberts is yet another
shooter who can mix up his game by getting to the basket. What makes him
different than the rest of the group is his size and he can hit the glass.
Somebody has to find all those weapons and that man ended up being Eddren
McCain. McCain had a superb freshman campaign and he dished out 3.1 assists per
contest.

Frontcourt:

Nobody benefited
from the run in the CIT more than Taylor Brown. On the year the 6-6 sophomore
only averaged 11.5 minutes per game, but he came on strong late in the year and
he has the potential and the confidence to play a much bigger role this time
around. Sam Singh will likely be the starting center. The fifth year senior is
not a great scorer, but he can eat up space in the paint. Will Egolf started
playing pretty well last season, but he got hurt after five games. If he can
stay healthy, the frontcourt at least has potential and some experience.
Otherwise Bradley will need the newcomers and Anthony Thompson to play a lot
more minutes than they probably should.

Who to Watch:

The return of
Warren creates a conundrum for Coach Les. Maniscalco turned into the top
three-point shooter on the team last season, but the team hit a lot more long
balls when Warren was playing two years ago. If Warren gets back to his old ways
of shooting over 40 percent from beyond the arc, he will playing a big role on
this team. That could leave Dunson and Roberts on the bench.

Final Projection:

The other option would be to play small and put Roberts at the four spot. That
has worked in certain situations, but it does leave the team vulnerable on the
glass. Last season Wilson and Collins were there to pick up the slack, but Singh
and Brown are not nearly as proven of players. If the frontcourt struggles,
bigger teams will have their way with the Braves under the basket.

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About Joel Welser

ColumnistCollege Preview Editor

Contactjwelser@collegehoops.net

Background

"Joel Welser does a tremendous job covering college basketball. He gives his readers knowledgeable and insightful information on college hoops." -Ernie Zeigler, Head Basketball Coach, Central Michigan University "Joel Welser writes clean, knowledgeable copy that always hits deadline." -Greg Eno, former editor-in-chief, Motor City Sports Magazine Growing up in Michigan, Joel Welser inherited a love for Big Ten sports. After defying all family traditions and not going to Michigan State, Joel headed out west to earn his bachelor degree from California State University, Northridge in Cinema Television Arts, specializing in screenwriting. For reasons still unknown, after his stint in Hollywood, Joel headed back to Michigan where he remains to this day complaining about the cold. Joel has found a successful formula with the popular top 144 series at collegehoops.net and has also written college football and college basketball previews and articles for various websites and magazines.